"Cruise Control" is a song by New Zealand band

Headless Chickens The Headless Chickens was a New Zealand band. Going against the grain of the Dunedin sound that dominated the Flying Nun Records roster at the time, the Headless Chickens made extensive use of electronic instruments in their music. History Th ...

. Written by members

Chris Matthews Christopher John Matthews (born December 17, 1945) is an American political commentator, retired talk show host, and author. Matthews hosted his weeknight hour-long talk show, ''Hardball with Chris Matthews'', on America's Talking and later on M ...

and

Michael Lawry Michael Lawry is a New Zealand rock musician. He is a member of numerous bands, notably The Headless Chickens (founder member) for whom he played the keyboards and experimented with sampling, as well as writer or co-writer of many of their songs ...

, the track was released as the second single from the band's second studio album, ''

Body Blow ''Body Blow'' is the second studio album by New Zealand rock band the Headless Chickens. It was originally released in 1991, then rereleased for Australia in 1993 with a substantially reworked track list, losing "Crash Hot" and "Road Train" but ga ...

'' (1991), in 1991 and reached number six on the

New Zealand Singles Chart The Official New Zealand Music Chart ( mi, Te Papa Tātai Waiata Matua o Aotearoa) is the weekly New Zealand top 40 singles and albums charts, issued weekly by Recorded Music NZ (formerly Recording Industry Association of New Zealand). The Music ...

. Three years later, the song was remixed and re-released as the "Eskimos in Egypt" mix. This version of the song peaked at number 26 in Australia and topped the New Zealand chart as a

double A-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph records and cassettes; these terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or record company ...

with "

George George may refer to: People * George (given name) * George (surname) * George (singer), American-Canadian singer George Nozuka, known by the mononym George * George Washington, First President of the United States * George W. Bush, 43rd Presiden ...

". An accompanying video was made for the remix, featuring Headless Chickens riding in a car at night. Both versions of the track were produced by Rex Visible and included on the band's 2002 compilation album, '' ChickensHits''. The song and its videos have received numerous accolades, including being named the 76th-greatest New Zealand song of all time by the

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(APRA).

Release, reception, and promotion

"Cruise Control" was first released on

' second album, ''

'', in 1991. The same year, the song was issued as the album's second single in New Zealand. On 1 September 1991, the single debuted on the

RIANZ Singles Chart Recorded Music NZ (formerly the Recording Industry Association of New Zealand (RIANZ)) is a non-profit trade association of record producers, distributors and recording artists who sell recorded music in New Zealand. Membership of Recorded Mus ...

at number 28. Over the next eight weeks, the song rose and fell within the top 30 until rising to its peak of number six on 3 November. Afterwards, the single descended from the chart, spending five weeks in the top 10 and 20 weeks in the top 50. The original version of "Cruise Control" remains the band's longest-charting single in their home country. In 1994, the track was remixed by English band Eskimos and Egypt as the "Eskimos in Egypt" mix and released as a single. In October 1994, this version of the song entered Australia's

ARIA Singles Chart The ARIA Charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling songs and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA became the offici ...

, rising into the top 50 on 20 November. Three weeks later, the remix peaked at number 26, staying on the chart for 11 weeks and becoming the band's only single to reach the top 50 in Australia. In New Zealand, the remix was issued as a

with new song "

", peaking atop the RIANZ chart for four nonconsecutive weeks in 1994 and 1995. This release spent 17 weeks in the top 50 and is Headless Chickens' highest-charting single in New Zealand, earning a gold sales

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for selling over 5,000 copies. Critically, New Zealand film and television website

NZ on Screen NZ On Screen is a state-funded online promotional showcase of New Zealand television and film. Funded by NZ On Air, it provides free worldwide access to NZ-produced television, film and music videos. Content is streamed and the webpages provide ...

called the Eskimos in Egypt mix one of the band's "most poppy and accessible songs". A music video directed by Jonathan Ogilvie was made for the remix, featuring Headless Chickens in a car as they ride through various landscapes at night. Throughout the video, the members partake in various activities, including eating lollipops, shaving, talking on mobile phones, and holding up a poster of the ''

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'' franchise.

Awards and accolades

The original version of "Cruise Control" was nominated for Single of the Year at the 1992

New Zealand Music Awards The Aotearoa Music Awards (previously called the New Zealand Music Awards), conferred annually by Recorded Music NZ, honour outstanding artistic and technical achievements in the recording industry. The awards are among the most significant that ...

, losing to " Why Does Love Do This to Me" by

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, while the original video was nominated for Best Video, losing to the clip for Push Push's song "

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". In 1995, the video for the remix was nominated for the same award (as was the video for "George") but lost again, this time to

Supergroove Supergroove is a New Zealand funk rock music group. Their debut album ''Traction (album), Traction'' was released in 1994. The group disbanded in 1997 but reformed in 2007. History The band was founded on New Year's Eve 1989/1990, having pre ...

's " Can't Get Enough" video. In 2001, the APRA named the original version of "Cruise Control" the 76th-best "New Zealand Song of All Time".

Track listings

New Zealand CD, 12-inch, and cassette single # "Cruise Control" (album mix) – 4:31 # "Cruise Control" (Eros mix) – 4:31 # "Cruise Control" (SOB mix) – 6:32 # "I'm Talking to You" – 3:03 Australian and UK CD single # "Cruise Control" (Eskimos in Egypt mix) – 3:53 # "Railway Surfing" (Octane mix) – 4:31 # "Cruise Control" (original mix) – 4:33 # "Inside Track" – 5:09 Australian 7-inch single :A. "Cruise Control" (Eskimos in Egypt mix) – 3:53 :B. "Railway Surfing" (Octane mix) – 4:31 CD and cassette single (with "George") # "George" # "Cruise Control" (Eskimos in Egypt mix) # "Bestiary" # "Milton Babbit's Rarotongan Holiday"

Credits and personnel

Credits are lifted from the CD singles and the ''

'' album booklet. Studios * Recorded and mixed in 1991 at Incubator Studios (Auckland, New Zealand) * Mastered at Precision Mastering (Los Angeles) Personnel *

– writing, vocals, guitars, keyboards, programs *

– keyboards, programs *

Fiona McDonald Fiona Maude McDonald (born 1965) is a New Zealand pop singer and television personality. Singer McDonald's first involvement with music came through singing jingles for Auckland student radio station bFM. From that work she was asked to joi ...

– vocals, keyboards * Anthony Nevison – vocals, guitars, bass, keyboards, programs, engineering * Bevan Sweeney – drums, programs * Grant Fell – bass, keyboards * Rex Visible – keyboards, programs, production, engineering * Angus McNaughton – programs * Becky Nunes – photography Remix personnel * Eskimos and Egypt – remixing * Staggman – engineering * Gideon Keith – cover design * Ade Britteon – inside cover and disc artwork * Mushroom Art – inside cover and disc artwork * Wayne Wilson – photography

Charts

Original version

Eskimos in Egypt mix

Certifications

References

{{Authority control 1991 songs 1991 singles 1994 singles Festival Records singles Flying Nun Records singles Headless Chickens songs Mushroom Records singles Number-one singles in New Zealand